1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of systems used to store fishing supplies. Specifically, the invention relates to systems used to manage fishing lures and commonly used fishing tools. Such a system prevents the lures and tools from becoming entangled yet provides easy and immediate accessibility for the user.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Contemporary fishing requires a considerable amount of equipment. The typical fisherman today brings with him a variety of lures and assorted tools. Tournament fishermen often need immediate and frequent access to a group of favorite lures and tools.
Historically such lures and tools have been stored in a traditional tackle box. Such a storage method has the disadvantage that the tackle box must be unstowed and restowed each time the tournament fisherman moves from one spot to another during a competitive event. The acts of unstowing and restowing take valuable time.
One prior art solution is a system or rack used to store a limited number of fishing lures by hanging them from their associated fish hooks. In these prior art designs, lures simply hung vertically by their hooks which were inserted through holes or apertures. A fishing boat at high speed experiences considerable transient vertical and translational movement. A lure hanging from its hook inserted through a simple hole or aperture is likely to be ejected from the same hole or aperture as the boat bounces up and down. The prior art of Peiser, Jr. (U.S. patent application Ser. 11/065,610 now abandoned) discloses such an invention. The prior art of Martinet, et al., (U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,901) attempts to mitigate this deficiency by the inclusion of a cover to restrain the vertical ejection of the hook from an aperture. However, the cover must be deliberately closed in order to function. If a fisherman inadvertently fails to close the cover, the hook and its associated lure may become dislodged. The prior art fails to teach a fishing lure presentation system that does not require a secondary means to assure the lures remain engaged in the system during the rough conditions found on a boat at high speed.
Fishing tools were also historically relegated to a simple tackle box. A tournament fisherman wastes valuable time digging through such a tackle box in search of tools such as pliers or a hook disgorger. Tools left on the boat deck can end up overboard during the rough movement of a fishing boat as it moves at high speed from one location to another. Maro (U.S. Pat. No. 2,974,804) teaches a tool holder with a plurality of holes or slots wherein tools can be placed for easy organization and access. The tool holder of Maro is designed to be attached to a vertical surface. However, prior art such as that of Maro does not perform well in a fishing boat environment. The tools are not restrained in their holes or slots. Such unstrained tools are likely to be ejected from the prior art tool holder by the rough vertical and translational movement of a boat at high speed. The prior art of Peiser, Jr., seeks to improve upon the prior art by adding a rubber grommet to each hole. Peiser, Jr., is silent about the relative size of the tools to the openings provided by the rubber grommets. A rubber grommet with an aperture of larger diameter than the maximum tool diameter does not actively grip or restrain the tool or prevent ejection of the tool during boat operation.